1. Technical Field
This invention relates to telephone jacks and, more particularly, to a telephony and cable jack interface for allowing a user to switch telephony service between cable and telephony service providers without rewiring internal jack connections.
2. Prior Art
Telephony jacks are a common fixture in most homes and businesses for covering connections to telephony service providers mounted within walls. Such service providers often include local telephone or cable networks, which include distinct wiring for bringing a signal into a residence. The connections are made within the walls that are coupled to existing terminals provided by the telephony and cable companies. Open ends of the jacks are accessible through outlets formed therein for making the connections to the select networks. The outlets are provided on the outer surface of the wall plates and cover both the telephony and cable network terminals disposed in the walls.
As a result, similarly sized telephone jacks are used for both cable and telephony terminals. When a resident subscribes to their service provider of choice, they will receive telephone capabilities either through their local telephony company or local cable company. Of course, such service providers require different terminal connections to the telephone jacks, which must be activated through a telephony box or cable box located outside the residence.
For example, apartment buildings periodically acquire new tenants who may choose different service providers on a regular basis. Rewiring the existing phone jack to accommodate a new provider can result in substantial service fees to the consumer and is cumbersome because the consumer has to schedule an appointment with a technician and then take time off from work to meet the technician at the residence.
Accordingly, a need remains for an easy to use combination telephony and cable jack interface so that a user can convert from one service provider to another without rewiring the existing outlets.